Film hanger rack



FILM HANGER RACK W. M. WHITE- ET AL Filed Sept. 19, 1950 FIG. Z.

nntvnmnlmnnmlnn IMMJMMI Patented Oct. 20, 1953 FILM HANGER RACK William M. White and Roger P. Leavitt, Rochester, N. Y., assignors to Eastman Kodak Company, Rochester, N. Y., a corporation of New Jersey Application September 19, 1950, Serial No. 185,658

4 Claims. 1

The present invention relates to racks, and more particularly to a rack for supporting a plurality of lm hangers so that the latter may be handled as a unit.

As is well known, iilms, particularly Cut Sheet Films, are mounted separately in iiat form on hangers for processing. With such an arrangement, the hangers are usually handled individually, the disadvantages of which are apparent to those familiar with such hangers. In order that the disadvantages incident to separate handling may be overcome, the present invention provides a hanger rack on which a plurality of separate film hangers may be supported in suspended relation for unitary handling. Also the rack provides a suitable handle or carrying member. In addition, the hangers are maintained in proper spaced relation to afford uniform access of the processing liquids to the lm supported in the hangers, yet the hangers are securely held against swaying or swinging on the rack.

The present invention has as its principal object the provision of a rack for mounting and supporting a plurality of film hangers.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a rack which enables a plurality of hangers to be moved as a unit.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a rack which holds the hangers in proper assembled relation, yet aiiords easy access of the processing liquids to the iilms held in the hangers.

Yet another object of the invention is the provision of a rack in which the hangers 4are held rigid to prevent swaying or swinging of the hangers relative to the rack.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a rack which will accommodate varying numbers of hangers.

And yet another object of the invention is the provision of a rack which may be adjusted laterally to load or remove as a group.

And a still further object of the invention is the provision of a rack which is sturdy, comprises few parts of rugged construction, easy to operate and highly effective in use.

To these and other ends, the inventive idea resides in certain improvements and combinations of parts, all as will be hereinafter more fully described, the novel features being pointed out in the claims at the end of the specification.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a rack constructed in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the invention, showing the relation thereto of a plurality of film-carrying hangers;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation view of the rack-andhanger arrangement illustrated in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an end View of the rack construction of the present invention, showing the relation thereto of a film hanger;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a portion of the top of a group of lm hangers, showing the relation thereto of the slotted blocks by which the hangers are attached to and supported on the rack of the present invention so as to maintain the hangers in proper assembled and spaced relation thereon.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of one end of one of the side rails of the rack, showing the means for adjusting the hangers longitudinally of the rack to position the 'hangers thereon;

Fig. 6 is an end view of the structure shown in Fig. 5 with the blocking member in its lower or blocking position to retain the hangers on the rack;

Fig. 7 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially on line 'I-'I of Fig. 6, showing the position of the blocking member for retaining the `slotted blocks of the hangers in position on the rack; and

Fig. 8 is a vertical sectional view taken substnatially on line 8 8 of Fig. 1 showing the arrangement for releasably holding the adjustable connecting member which permits later-al adjustment of the rack.

Similar reference numerals throughout the various views indicate the same parts.

As is well known, films, particularly Cut Sheet Films, are often mounted individually in holders or hangers for ease in handling during processing. Each hanger may be formed to provide a pair or spaced parallel side members II connected by a bottom member I2 and a top cross member I3. The side members II extend above the cross member I3 and are connected at their tops by a tie rod I4 which has portions I5 which project laterally beyond the side members II to provide supports by which the hanger may be suspended in the treating solution. The abovedescribed hanger, per se, is old and forms no part of the present invention, except las will be later described. Accordingly, the showing of this form of hanger is not intended as a limitation, but merely as an illustration of one form of hanger which may be used with the device of the present invention. Obviously, so long as the hanger is provided with a tie rod I4 or extending portions I5, it will be suitable for use with the rack of the present invention.

The portions I5 have secured thereto, by means of pins I8, blocks I9, preferably of plastic material, and of the shape best shown in Figs. 4 and 6. Each block has a thickness which is greater than that of the hanger tie rod I4 as best shown in Figs. 4 and '7, and for a purpose to be later described. The outer surface 20 of each block I9 is provided with a horizontal open end slot 2l by which the hanger may be secured to the supporting rack, as will be later described.

A plurality of hangers are connected by means of their blocks I3 to a supporting rack, broadly designated by the numeral 23. The rack cornprises a pair of parallel side rails which, in the preferred form, consists of inwardly facing channels, each oi which has a vertical web portion 24, a lower horizontal flange 25 and an upper horizontal flange 26 which is longer than and overlies the lower ilange 25, as best shown in Fig. 6, The channels or side rails are connected substantially at their midpoints by a cross member or handle which is in the form of a pair of nesting channel members 2l and 28, each of which has one end 29 anchored or secured, in any suitable manner, to the upper flange 26 of one of the side rails, as best shown in Fig. l. The upper channel 23 has secured to the web 38 thereof, by means of rivets 3l, or other suitable ashioning means, a leaf spring 32 the free end 33 of which is formed with a downwardly extending pin 34 adapted to project through registering holes 35 and 36 in the web 39 of channel 28 and web 3l of channel 2, respectively, to hold the channels 21 and 28 in connected relation, as shown in Figs. 1 and 8 to maintain the spacing of the side rails, yet permit varying said spacing for a purpose below described. The channels 2 and 23 form a unitary connection between the side rails and form therewith an H-shaped supporting rack for the hangers. Also, the channels 2l and 28 form an adjustable handle by which the entire rack, with its supported hangers, may be lifted from or inserted in various processing tanks.

The opposite ends of each flange 23 of the side rail have extending upwardly therefrom ears or lugs 38 to which the ends of a rod 39 are anchored, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, 5, and 7. A pair or" holding and positioning members or clamping brackets 4i! is slidable axially along each rod 39 so that the members may be positioned selectively along the rod 39 or longitudinally of the rack in accordance with the number of hangers being supported. Each member 40 is formed from a piece of sheet metal to provide a U-shaped element having a bottom 4I and spaced legs 42 and 42a formed with aligned apertures to receive rod 33, as is apparent from Fig. 5. Thus, each member 46 may be slid along the rod 39 to position the member selectively on the rod so as to clamp and hold the group of hangers in position, as illustrated in Fig. 7.

In order to retain the members 4D in any selective position of adjustment, each member is provided with a suitable holding means, which, in the present embodiment, comprises an L- shaped element having a leg 44 which rests on bottom 4I of member 40, and a leg 43 which is positioned between legs 42 and 42a of member 4U. Leg 43 has an aperture through which rod 39 extends. Normally, the leg 43 is inclined toward the leg 42a, as shown in Fig. 5. A coil spring 45 surrounds rod 39 and is positioned between leg 43 and the other or upper leg 42 of the member 49. With the parts in the position shown in Fig. 5, the members 40 will be securely held in adjustable position on rod 39 and against the blocks I9 of the end hangers to hold all the hangers in closely packed relation, as shown in Figs. 2 and 7 to prevent swaying or moving of the hangers on the racks, yet to maintain the hangers in sufficiently spaced relation to afford access of the processing liquids to the Iilms positioned in the hangers, as will be deemed apparent from an inspection of Fig. 2. However, when any member 49 is to be adjusted along the rod, the leg 43 is moved toward the leg 42 or upwardly, as viewed in Fig. 5, to release member 4D. The latter may now be slid axially along rod 39 to any desired position of adjustment when the desired position of adjustment has been reached, as shown, for example, in Fig. 7, the leg 43 is released and is then returned by spring to the position shown in Fig. 5 to cause leg 43 to be clamped onto rod 39 to lock or hold the member 40 in adjusted position.

The leg 42a of each clamping bracket 49 has secured thereto, for pivotal movement about rod 39, a blocking member 50. The outer surface 5I of each member 50 is formed with an open end slot 52 adapted to receive the upper nange 25 of the side rail channel, as best shown in Figs. 3 and 6. When in this position a depending portion 53 of member 50 overlies and is positioned in the path of blocks I9, as shown in Figs. 3 and 7, to prevent removal of the blocks and hence the hangers from the anges 25 of the side rails. Each member 56 is independently slidable along a rod 39 as a unit with its holding member or bracket 40 so that the two members at the opposite ends of each rod are brought into clamping relation with the end blocks I9 to hold the hangers in proper packed position. Thus, the members 40 and 50 constitute means to provide longitudinal adjustment of the rack. Such engagement serves to move the blocks I9 into engaging relation as shown in Figs. 4 and 7 to hold the various hangers in closely associated relation to prevent movement of the hangers relative to the rack, the advantages of which are deemed obvious. However, as the blocks have a thickness which is greater than the thickness of the hangers, as shown in Fig. '7, the latter are effectively spaced longitudinally of the rack to allow free access of the processing solution to the films in the hangers, this is particularly important with respect to the hangers in the center of the group, as is deemed apparent from an inspection of Fig. 2.

When, however, the hangers are to be removed from the rack, the members 53 on each rod 39 are swung about the rod to the dotted position shown in Fig. 6 to move the members 50 to an inoperative or non-blocking position. The various hangers may now be removed from the rack merely by sliding the blocks I9 longitudinally along the anges 26 of the side rails until the ends of the anges are reached, at which time the hangers may be disconnected from the racks as is deemed apparent.

When the rack is to be loaded, the latter is inverted so that the flange 26 of the side rails is down, or inverted from the position shown in Fig. 6. The blocking members 5I! at one end of the rack are then swung to their dotted or inoperative position. The hangers are then inverted, and the blocks I9 are successively positioned so that the slots 2I are in registry with the short anges 25 of the opposite side rails, and the blocks are then slid longitudinally of the rails either to a desired position or until they abut the blocking members 50 at the opposite ends of the rod. When the proper or desired number of hangers has been mounted on the racks, the raised blocking members 50 are then moved to their operative or blocking position with portion 53 arranged in the path of the blocks I9, as shown in full lines of Fig. 6. The brackets 4I) with the positioned blocking members 5U, are then slid axially along the rods 39 so as to bring the portions 53 at each end of the rack into clamping engagement against the end bl-ocks I9 to clamp the hangers in assembled relation, as shown in Figs. 2 and '1. The adjustable brackets 4B enable the rack to accommodate any number of hangers above a certain minimum, up to the capacity of the rack, yet securely hold and retain any number of hangers in position on the rack. The brackets 40 with members 50 thus constitute longitudinally adjustable clamping and/or positioning elements.

It is sometimes desirable to provide quick removal of individual hangers or a group of hangers from the rack, for example, to provide for a second exposure in color processing. To secure this result, the rack is made adjustable to expand in two directions. One such expansion is provided by means of the above-described adjustable brackets 40. The lateral adjustment is provided by reason of the pin-and-hole connections 34, 35 and 36. It is apparent that when the free end 33 of spring 32 is lifted, the pin 34 will be withdrawn from the registering slots 35 and 36 to disconnect the channels 21 and 28. These channels may then be moved laterally relatively to increase the spacing of the side rails to withdraw the anges 25 thereof out of slots 2| of blocks I9 to disconnect the rack from the hangers. Obviously, a group of hangers may be attached as a unit to the rack by a reverse movement of channels 21 and 28 to move the anges 25 of the side rails simultaneously into aligning slots 2| of a group of blocks I9. Thus, the hangers may be assembled or removed individually by positioning the portion 53 of the blocking member as above described, or the hangers may be assembled and removed as a unit by moving the side rails laterally by sliding channels 21 and 28 relatively. By means of such arrangements, separate and independent means are provided for attaching the hangers to and removing them from the racks. When the channels 21 and 28 have returned to their operative position, the holes 35 and 36 will be brought into registry with the pin 34 and the latter will snap into the registering holes under the action of spring 32 to connect the channels 21 and 28 to position the side rails in proper laterally spaced relation to engage and clamp blocks I9.

It is thus apparent from the above description that the present invention provides a new and improved rack on which lm hangers may be mounted. The hangers are securely retained in position on the rack and held against swaying or moving relative thereto. The rack is adjustable in two directions for reasons pointed out above. While one embodiment of the invention has been disclosed, it is to be understood that the inventive idea may be carried out in a number of ways. Therefore, the present invention is not to be limited to the precise details described but is intended to cover all variations and modifications thereof falling within the scope of the appended claims.

What we claim and desire to secure by Lette-rs Patent of the United States is:

1. A film-hanger rack for supporting a plurality of separate film hangers each of which is formed with spaced side members and a top tie rod, and means for supporting said hangers from said tie rods, said means comprising in combination, blocks rigidly secured to the opposite ends of each tie rod, each block having a thickness greater than that of said hanger and being formed with an open end slot, a frame comprising spaced parallel side rails, means for connecting said rails, means on said rails engageable in said slots to connect said hangers in suspended relation to said rails, blocking members pivotally connected to said rails and movable to one position to permit said blocks to be positioned to receive said connecting means on said rails and movable to another position in the path of the blocks secured to said rails to prevent the removal of said blocks, and means for adjusting said blocking members longitudinally of said rails to move the blocks of said hangers into engaging relation to retain said hangers against movement relative to said frame, said blocks serving to space said hangers.

2. A film-hanger rack for supporting a plurality of separate film hangers each of which is formed with spaced side members and a top tie rod, and means for supporting said hangers from said tie rods, said means comprising in combination, blocks rigidly secured to the opposite ends of each tie rod, each block having a thickness greater than that of said hanger and being formed with an open slot, a frame comprising spaced parallel side rails, adjustable means for connecting said rails, means on said rails engageable in said slots to connect said hangers in suspended relation to said rails, blocking members pivotally connected to said rails and movable to one position to permit said blocks to be positioned on or removed from said rails, said blocking member being also movable to another position in the path of said blocks to prevent removal thereof from said rails, means for individually adjusting said blocking member on said rails to move the latter into engagement with the blocks of the end hangers to move the blocks into closely assembled relation so as to hold said hangers against movement relative to said frame, and means for adjusting said connection means to spread said rails laterally to permit assembly of said hangers as a unit on or removed from said rails independently of said blocking member.

3. A nlm-hanger rack for supporting a plurality of separate lm hangers each of which is formed with spaced side members and a top tie rod, and means for supporting said hangers from said tie rods, said means comprising in combination, blocks rigidly secured to the opposite ends of each tie rod, each block having a thickness greater than that of said hanger and being formed with an open end slot, a frame comprising spaced parallel side rails, means for connecting said rails, means on said rails engageable in said slots to connect said hangers in suspended relation to said rails, a rod connected to the opposite ends of each rail and positioned above and extending longitudinally thereof, a pair of positioning elements slidably mounted on each rod adjacent the opposite ends thereof, a blocking part pivotally mounted on each element, said part being movable relative to said element to one position to permit said bocks to be assembled on said rails, or movable to another position and into the path of said blocks to prevent the removal thereof 'giT from said rails, and means for positioning said elements along the rails so that said parts engage the end blocks to move said blocks into closely assembled relation to hold said hangers against movement relative to said frame.

e. A film-hanger rack for supporting a plurality of separate film hangers each of which is formed with spaced side members and a top tie rod, and means for supporting said hangers from said tie rods, said means comprising in combination, blocks rigidly secured to the opposite ends of each tie rod, each block having a thickness greater than that of said hanger and being formed with an open end slot, a frame comprising spaced parallel side rails and adjustable means for connecting said rails, means on said rails engageable in said slots to connect said hangers in suspended relation to said rails, a rod connected t0 the opposite ends of each rail and positioned above and extending longitudinally thereof, a pair of positioning elements slidably mounted on each rod adjacent the opposite ends thereof, a blocking part pvotally mounted on each element, said part being movable relative to said element to one position to permit said blocks to be assembled on said rails, or movable to another position and into the path of said blocks to prevent the removal thereof from said rails, means for positioning said elements along the rails so that said parts engage the end blocks to move said blocks into closely assembled relation to hold said hangers against movement relative to said frame, and means for adjusting said adjustable connecting means to permit the spacing of said rails to be increased to allow the assembly or removal of said hangers as a unit on said rails.

WILLIAM M. WHITE. ROGER P. LEAVITT.

References Cited in the ille 0I this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 971,543 Kugler Oct. 4, 1910 2,436,882 Edelhart Mar. 2, 1945i 

